In a spectacular wet qualifying session, Lando Norris secured pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix last night. The session began in the rain, challenging the drivers to stay clear of the wall. However, there were no major crashes. Max Verstappen commendably clocked the second fastest time and will therefore start from the front row tomorrow.
The Mercedes team failed to submit the setups of both cars to the race management in advance, raising questions about the potential penalty and whether George Russell’s time will stand.
Here is a quick overview of the Las Vegas GP qualifying session.
Q1: Slipping and Sliding, Hamilton Out
The qualifying session in Las Vegas started in the rain. It was a slippery affair. While some initially opted for intermediates, the entire field soon switched to rain tires. Initially, it was a hellish challenge for the drivers to get temperature into the tires. In fact, with five minutes left on the clock in Q1, Max Verstappen still had not posted a fast time.
Fortunately for the four-time world champion from Red Bull, this changed in the final stages. First, he moved out of the danger zone, then he clocked the fastest time. Surprisingly, crashes were avoided for a long time. With one minute left on the clock, a blocking Oliver Bearman lightly touched the wall, followed shortly by Alexander Albon who crashed at a higher speed, causing significant damage. His session ended immediately. Ultimately, Q1 ended with Mercedes driver George Russell at the top of the time list (1.53,144), followed by Max Verstappen 0.314 seconds behind. The big losers in Q1 were Lewis Hamilton, Yuki Tsunoda, and Kimi Antonelli.
Eliminated: Albon, Antonelli, Bortoleto, Tsunoda, Hamilton
Q2: Piastri Escapes, Stroll’s Gamble Fails
The start of Q2 was slightly delayed due to a damaged post. Shortly after, it was a scramble for the drivers to get back on the track, with World Championship leader Lando Norris leading the way. Meanwhile, the rain had stopped, but everyone still opted for the full wets at the start. Halfway through, Max Verstappen positioned himself at the top of the time list (1.52,693), but the drying track was getting faster and faster.
Lance Stroll took a gamble and switched to the intermediate compound in the final phase of Q2 as the first (and only) one, but the gamble did not pay off. He was eliminated. Oscar Piastri narrowly avoided early elimination and advanced to Q3 as the tenth driver. The fastest time was once again set by George Russell (1.50,935), followed by Isack Hadjar and Carlos Sainz. Max Verstappen ended up with the fifth fastest time.
Eliminated: Hülkenberg, Lance Stroll, Ocon, Bearman, Colapinto.
Q3:
In the final part of the qualifying for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, everyone was on the intermediates. Carlos Sainz made a convincing start and recorded the fastest time of the field (1.50,88) in the first series of fast runs. The track was evolving quickly, leading to constant changes in positions. With two minutes left on the clock, Norris sped to the fastest time (1.48,384), followed by Piastri and Verstappen.
In the final fast run, Norris improved his time again, convincingly clocking 1.47,934. The pole position was his.
The Las Vegas Grand Prix starts tomorrow at 03:00 UTC.
